This is a quick and easy 20-minute Cajun Shrimp Pasta with just six ingredients! Cajun-seasoned shrimp tossed with pasta and a super light butter-lemon sauce – it’s a little spicy, smoky, buttery, and so, so delicious.
Easy Cajun Shrimp Pasta Recipe
If you’ve been following along, it’s no secret I’m a serious fan of simple pasta recipes, and today it’s all about this easy Cajun shrimp pasta. It has six ingredients, is ready in about 20 minutes, and has a great flavors.
Like my ravioli with mushrooms and asparagus and Mediterranean pasta, it’s what some consider a “sauce-less” pasta, although it’s a bit of a misnomer as there is a sauce – it’s just a very light. It’s made with butter and lemon, so it has a rich flavor without being heavy. It also makes this recipe so easy.
And keeping it simple really lets the Cajun spice shine, which is basically the star of this pasta dish. It’s a Southern-style (specifically Louisiana-style) seasoning mix that’s a little spicy, smoky, savory, and just all-around delicious.
20 minutes of cooking time, friends. That’s all the time you need to make this Cajun shrimp pasta. We can do this.
Ingredients
- Spaghetti or another long pasta shape like linguine, fettuccine, or bucatini – use what you have.
- Large shrimp that have been peeled and deveined with the tails removed. I use thawed frozen shrimp to make it really easy.
- Cajun seasoning – This is a seasoning mix with garlic powder, red pepper, paprika, onion, and salt.
- Unsalted butter
- Lemon juice
- Chopped chopped parsley
Different brands of Cajun seasoning will have different amounts of salt included. The one I use (Weber brand) has plenty, so I don’t add any extra salt. Your pasta may need some, so just check at the end and add more to taste.
How to Make It
This is a speedy-quick recipe mostly because shrimp don’t need much time at all to cook. What you want to avoid is overcooking the shrimp while you wait for the pasta.
Get your pasta water going in a large pot and, once it starts boiling, drop the pasta in. Boil it according to the package instructions, which will take about 10 to 12 minutes. You can prepare the rest of the dish in the time it takes to cook the pasta.
Toss the shrimp with the seasoning. I like to place the shrimp in a bowl and toss and stir them around with the seasoning until they are evenly coated.
Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the raw shrimp in an even layer and cook them for about two minutes, flip them over and cook them for another two minutes.
At this point, if your pasta is not al dente yet, take the cooked shrimp out of the hot pan and set them aside (turn the heat to low so the butter doesn’t brown or burn).
When the pasta is ready, drain it and place it in the pan with the butter. Toss the cooked pasta around to coat it in the butter, add the lemon juice, parsley, and shrimp. Toss again and serve. Add a little more chopped parsley for garnish if you like.
I like this pasta when it’s made, but it will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for one to two days.
Make this easy Cajun shrimp pasta recipe for dinner this week – you won’t regret it.
Happy Cooking,
More Easy Pasta Dinners
- Bucatini all’Amatriciana
- Shrimp Penne with Vodka Sauce
- Sun-Dried Tomato Spaghetti with Bacon
- Fettuccine Alfredo
- Creamy Cajun Chicken Alfredo
📣 Do you love this recipe? I would love to know! Leave a comment below the recipe, along with your recipe star rating.
PrintEasy Cajun Shrimp Pasta
This Cajun shrimp pasta is a quick 20-minute dinner and perfect for busy weeknights.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Saute
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 8 ounces spaghetti
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 pound raw shrimp, peeled, deveined and tails removed
- 2 1/2 teaspoons Cajun seasoning (see note)
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 1/4 cup chopped parsley
Instructions
- Boil the pasta following package direction. Place the shrimp in a medium-sized bowl. Sprinkle the Cajun seasoning over the top and toss the shrimp to coat them evenly. Set them aside.
- Melt the butter in a large non-stick pan over medium heat. Place the shrimp in a single layer in the pan and cook them for about two minutes and then turn them and cook them for another two minutes. If your pasta is not done at this point, remove the shrimp from the pan so they don’t overcook. Turn the stove heat to low so the butter doesn’t brown or burn.
- Once the pasta is cooked, drain it and add it to the pan along with the shrimp. Add the lemon juice and parsley and toss it all together.
Notes
Depending on how much salt is in your seasoning mix you may want to add extra to the recipe. You can always add a few pinches right at the end if needed.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/4 of recipe
- Calories: 417
- Sugar: 2g
- Sodium: 724.4mg
- Fat: 13.2g
- Saturated Fat: 7.5g
- Unsaturated Fat: 4.6g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 44.2g
- Fiber: 2.5g
- Protein: 30.7g
- Cholesterol: 213mg
Keywords: cajun shrimp pasta, easy shrimp pasta recipe
The nutrition is an estimate only. It was calculated using Nutrifox, an online nutrition calculator.
Post updated from the archives. First published in May 2020.
Joe B says
What brand of Cajun Spice do you use in this recipe?
April Anderson says
I used Weber brand!